There were times this season when Jamie Lokken made the game of softball look easy, and surely the outstanding play from the Montreat College junior centerfielder made it easy for conference coaches to select Lokken as the Appalachian Athletic Conference Player of the Year after a season during which Lokken led the AAC in batting average, runs batted in, slugging percentage, hits, and total bases, and came within one home run of tying for that title, too.

Junior Rachel Stowe from Belmont, N.C., who doubles as the Cavs' finest pitcher and plays infield as well, joined Lokken on the AAC All-Conference First Team after a great year in the circle.  Stowe posted an Earned Run Average of 2.70 and collected 15 wins, trailing only AAC Pitcher of the Year Maddie Monroe of Reinhardt College, who won 17.

Stowe, Lokken and the rest of Head Coach Lee Swanson's third-seeded Cavaliers are battling this week in the AAC conference tournament at Domtar Park in Kingsport, Tennessee.

Lokken's 40 RBI gave her six more than runner-up Haley Odle of Virginia Intermont College, and Lokken's .438 batting average won that crown by .39 points over Cali Lovett of Reinhardt.  Though Odle's 12 homers eclipsed Lokken's 11, Lokken posted huge margins over the rest of the AAC in total bases (her 115 easily topped Odle's 83), slugging percentage (again, her .839 outpaced Odle's .741), and runs scored with 34.

Stowe and Lokken, from Kennewick, WA., joined six players from regular-season champion Reinhardt and four from Union on the 18-player squad.  

The AAC announced its All-Academic squad as well, and three Cavaliers worked their way onto that team.  Representing Montreat are Kerby Barkdoll, a senior outfielder from Hendersonville, N.C., senior catcher/first baseman Erin Cross from Morganton, N.C., and Stephanie Morrison, a junior catcher from Davenport, WA.